The Black Dahlia is one of my favourite books, De Palma one of my favourite directors. I didn't think much of the released film at all. There are pacing problems, obviously the result of cutting around 60 minutes of material. De Palma's original cut ran an hour longer and allegedly fleshed out the characters more, Bucky especially.
Ellroy watched the original cut and loved it, apparently it's like a totally different film. The released edit, not so much.
There is still much to enjoy, but it just doesn't hang together well. Hopefully, one day, we get a restored release.
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